Jan. 4, 2009 On the Shelves

January 2, 2009

The following books are available for checkout at the Portales Public Library:

Win the War Within by Floyd H. Chilton with Laura Tucker. Floyd Chilton is a renowned scientist and currently serves as a professor of physiology and pharmacology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. He is convinced that a silent and devastating plague is sweeping our country. He also believes this plague is largely preventable and provides convincing evidence for food to be a major contributor to this epidemic. In Win the War Within, Dr. Chilton exposes the connection between and inflammation and inflammatory diseases.

Inflammatory disease occurs when the body’s own defense system turns against itself. At best, the inflammation produces mild discomfort from such ailments as allergies, chronic fatigue, eczema, arthritis. At its worst, inflammation can cause diabetes, atherosclerosis, dementia, asthma, heart disease and obesity. Disturbingly, inflammatory illnesses can reside in a person’s body without giving away its presence. It is a silent and simmering condition that often builds without our intention or understanding. By the time its presence is known, it can often be difficult to fight and overcome and can even lead to debilitating pain, suffering and death.

Dr. Chilton has 20 years of research and 6 clinical trials backing up his claims. He has produced a revolutionary eating plan that can treat and even reverse inflammatory symptoms or reduce your chances of developing an inflammatory condition in the first place. He provides the latest news on the anti-inflammatory drug crisis, four weeks’ worth of inflammation-fighting menus, an exclusive Inflammatory Index, with ratings for more than 150 foods and a shopper’s guide to two essential inflammation-fighting supplements. Additionally, he provides a valuable source of hope for those who suffer from inflammatory diseases.

Mistress of the Vatican: The True Story of Olimpia Maidalchini: The Secret Female Pope by Eleanor Herman. Today’s Roman Catholic Church firmly states that women must be excluded from church leadership positions, but they neglect to mention that for over a decade in the seventeenth century a woman unofficially, but openly, ran the Vatican. Now, Eleanor Herman exposes one of the church’s deepest secrets, laying bare facts that have been concealed for 350 years.

Beginning in 1644 and for eleven years after, Olimpia Maidalchini, sister-in-law and reputed mistress of the indecisive Pope Innocent X, directed Vatican business, appointed cardinals, negotiated with foreign ambassadors, and helped herself to a heaping portion of the Papal State’s treasury. Unlike the ninth century’s Pope Joan, whose life is shrouded in mystery, Olimpia’s story is documented in thousands of letters, news sheets, and diplomatic dispatches.

Born in modest circumstances, Olimpia was almost forced into a convent at the age of fifteen due to the lack of a dowry. She used deceit to escape, and vowed never to be poor and powerless again. Throughout her life, Olimpia exacted excruciating vengeance on anyone who tried to lock her up or curb her power.

Seventeenth-century Rome boasted the world’s most glorious art and glittering pageants but also suffered from famine, floods, swarms of locusts, and bubonic plague. Olimpia’s world was kleptocratic; everyone from the lowliest servant up to the pope’s august relatives unblushingly stole as much as they possibly could. Nepotism was rampant, and popes gave away huge sums and principalities to their nephews instead of helping the poor. Mistress of the Vatican brings to life not only a woman, and a church, but an entire civilization in all its greatness … and all its ignominy.

Coyote Speaks: Wonders of the Native American World by Ari Berk & Carolyn Dunn. The stories and artwork of Native American tribes are a vital part of American culture because they contain within them the enduring beliefs and traditions of the first peoples of this continent. For thousands of years, tribal ways and wisdom have been passed down in story, song, dance, and art from elder to child, from tribe to tribe, and from Native peoples to the world at large. From those teachings, stories are told, ancient objects are kept, and beautiful art is made.

Through language, the diverse peoples of the North American tribes have come to understand the world around them. As the people walked the land, the land shaped their stories as it shaped their ways of life, family relationships, alliances, conflicts, and dreams. Even though many tribal people no longer live in the lands of their ancestors, the people and stories endure. Through story, song, dance, and art, Native peoples continue to understand and describe who they were in ancient times, and who they have become today.

Coyote Speaks encourages better understanding of Native American cultures by exploring through word and image some of the story-paths and life-ways of America’s First People. Of the more than five hundred known tribes, nearly fifty are represented in this book, from all parts of North America.